St. Joseph County cop arrested for drunk driving had previous suspension for alcohol use
SOUTH BEND — A St. Joseph County Police officer who was arrested this weekend for allegedly crashing his patrol vehicle while drunk had previously been suspended for alcohol consumption.
In a press release Tuesday, a St. Joseph County police spokesman said Coty Hoffman, 30, was suspended for three days in July for violations of the department's policy on alcohol consumption and conduct unbecoming an officer. In addition to the suspension, Hoffman was ordered to alcohol counseling and placed on departmental probation for six months, meaning he would have been on probation on early Sunday morning when he reportedly hit a mailbox near Hickory Road and later allegedly exhibited "slowed" speech.
Hoffman was arrested by Indiana State Police for operating while intoxicated Sunday, though he has not been formally charged with any crime stemming from that incident.
In its initial news release about Hoffman's arrest Sunday, the St. Joseph County Police Department did not mention that Hoffman was on departmental probation for the prior incident. The department released that information Tuesday, "due to media interest in this matter and desire to strive towards transparency as much as possible."
"In May of this year, photographs of Hoffman in a state of undress and unconsciousness were provided to the department along with allegations of alcohol use while in uniform and on-duty," the release said about the prior incident Hoffman was suspended for. "After the completion of an internal investigation and interviewing multiple witnesses, [internal affairs] was unable to find sufficient proof to sustain those allegations.
"However, it was determined that Hoffman had violated department policy regarding excessive intoxication and impairment while off-duty and was in violation of policy for conduct unbecoming an officer."
Hoffman was suspended without pay for three days on July 25 and was ordered to alcohol counseling, and placed on probation for six months.
The July suspension does appear on Hoffman's personnel file, which was released by the county after The Tribune filed a public records request. Hoffman's file shows he was hired as a correctional officer at the St. Joseph County Jail in 2015 and then as a patrol officer in 2019. The file also shows Hoffman was suspended without pay one day in December 2020 for "twice failing to file a report when required."
Hoffman's July suspension came before the patrolman was arrested Sunday while off-duty. Police say he was driving his county police vehicle near the 53000 block of Hickory Road — which is just south of Cleveland Road on the northeast side of South Bend — around midnight on Sunday morning. It's not clear why Hoffman was driving his cruiser while off-duty or where he was coming from.
It is not immediately clear what effect Hoffman's probation will have on any disciplinary decision from the department regarding his recent arrest. The officer is currently on paid administrative leave while the department conducts another internal investigation. Police say they cannot initiate disciplinary action against Hoffman until the investigation is presented to the county's police merit board.
Hoffman has not been formally charged, but a docket entry has been filed and he is scheduled to appear in court for a hearing in late January.
Email Marek Mazurek at mmazurek@sbtinfo.com. Follow him on Twitter: @marek_mazurek
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: St. Joseph County cop arrested for OWI previously suspended for alcohol use
